


It's Not a Romantic Comedy (but a tragedy)

by sammyspreadyourwings



Series: Queen Prompts [20]
Category: Bohemian Rhapsody (Movie 2018), Queen (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, CEO, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Friendship, Idiots in Love, M/M, Pining, Strangers to Lovers, Temporarily Unrequited Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-23
Updated: 2019-03-23
Packaged: 2019-11-28 09:51:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,503
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18206879
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sammyspreadyourwings/pseuds/sammyspreadyourwings
Summary: John's life suddenly feels like a romantic comedy when he meets CEO Freddie Mercury.





	It's Not a Romantic Comedy (but a tragedy)

**Author's Note:**

> Another prompt fill, it's super recent!

It starts with a CEO. Most trashy romances do, a CEO out of touch with the world and finds a low-to-middle class person to show them that slowing down is worth it. That the business will still grind on despite them not spending every second managing it. John thinks it might be an interesting spin on his autobiography if he had both the skill to write and the want to disclose his entire life to the world.

Although to be fair, he’s missing the role of being the quirky intern fresh out of college. He’s just the IT guy, who got the unlucky call to fix something. Also, to his great misfortune, he’s not alone while fixing the computer.

Freddie Mercury, CEO, and founder of the Mercury brand clothing line is having a private meeting with two chairs, Brian May and Roger Taylor as he later learns. John tries to be as inconspicuous as possible, but he fails miserably ten minutes in when the entire hard drive crashes.

Apparently, that was endearing because he gets a call five minutes before his shift ends to go back to the office. This time they’re alone, which gives John time to really observe Freddie Mercury. He’s dressed in an extravagantly casual way and holds himself with the slight hunch of shyness. John finds him to be one of the most beautiful men he’s ever met, visually at least.

He looks away when nothing is said for a time because getting fantasies about your boss’s boss is arguably the worse thing for job security.

“Tell me, are you single?”

Well. That’s worth a call to HR if John didn’t have a little part of him that’s excited about the question and another part of him that’s curious about the reasoning.

“Yes.”

Mr. Mercury nods and leans back in his chair. John bites the inside of his cheek because he thinks he knows where this is going and he begins planning his graceful escape.

“And your name is?”

“John Deacon.” He has the urge to also blurt out his birthdate, but that _would_ be too weird for this situation.

“John…” Mr. Mercury says the name like he’s tasting fine wine.

Hell, he probably knows what fine wine tastes like.

“Would you like to get dinner with me?”

John blinks, “now?”

“Or at anytime, if you already have plans tonight.”

It’s too casual to be anything but a proposition. This is such a bad idea he can’t even begin to count the ways this could go wrong. But like every plucky intern too nervous to say no to their boss, he nods.

“Yeah, I’m free now, or in the future.”

* * *

It works out pretty much like John figured it would. A clandestine relationship of the most casual order. The sex is fantastic, but Freddie made it explicitly clear that to ask for any more would be to ask for it to end. John hasn’t figured out if it’s because Freddie is free with his love or if he has some buried commitment issues. In between their dates and sex, which ruin John’s inability to get attached, he’s somehow gained friends in Roger and Brian.

John figures there are about four or so months before he needs to bail for the sake of his own heart. He’s told Brian as much.

“I wish he sees what he has in you,” Brian says.

Roger seeks him out not long after that, and not for the first time he wonders if Brian and Roger are the same person in two bodies. It seems like what one knows the other knows instantly.

“Talking sense into Freddie is like trying to stop a cat from knocking things over,” Roger sits on his desk working out a complicated stitch pattern, “he’ll have to lose you to figure it out, but I imagine it’ll be too late by that time.”

That’s where the story deviates from this classic romance tale. Usually, the friends would be encouraging him to wait it out because he’ll realize in his own time. Roger and Brian seem to encourage him doing whatever is best for him. He figures that in the end they’ll side with Freddie, but they do care about him.

It's starting to get too painful to watch Freddie leave after sex or for him to be ushered out a backway when they have a minute during the day. John thinks about it a lot, to the point that he feels like the break up has already happened. All he needs now is a thunderstorm and a bridge and enough energy to be angry about this entire thing.

He never understood being in different places in the relationship, but now he does get it.

So, it ends how he started it. In the office alone with Freddie in a chair in front of him asking for dinner and a night of his life. He’s got a speech prepared, notecards in his desk he’s been practicing all day.

“Where do you want to go for dinner tonight?”

“I don’t want dinner,” he says.

He can’t do this when Freddie looks carefree and happy. John couldn’t handle it if he watched the smile slip from his face.

“Oh, you naughty minx, you want to get to the main event?”

“No.”

There’s the change in the air he was looking for. He imagines the words might _be the room is filled with bated breath._ It doesn’t feel like apprehension, but an inevitability.

“I can’t do this anymore, as it is,” John sighs, “this whole casual sex thing? It’s great, but it’s just so hard not to fall in love with you, and I need to end this before I get hurt.”

Freddie nods and sits back down. His chin rests on his hands and he’s staring at John with an awed injury in them. It aches that he can’t comfort Freddie, but he’ll stay and give Freddie a chance for a response.

“I haven’t had a serious relationship in years.”

John knows that the last two ended in tragedy.

“Give me some time to consider making this something… less casual? If you’re willing.”

It's more than he was expecting, and he knows that this is going to come crashing down around him. Things always do in the climax of the story.

“Two days, that’s all I’m going to wait. Don’t talk to me until then.”

The weekend. He can mope in his apartment and prepare himself for the answer on Monday. Brian and Roger must hear about it because they send him twin messages of support.

_You’re something John, to even get him to consider anything again after Jim’s well, you know. –_ Roger.

_Thank you for giving him time, and good for you knowing what you want. Bri_

John wonders when Brian will stop pining or when Roger will finally settle down. He’s glad they aren’t mad at him for breaking their best friend’s heart, or at the very least upsetting him. He can’t imagine someone as passionate as Freddie keeping his love off his sleeves.

They do get their rainstorm scene after all. It’s half past midnight, but someone has been banging on his door for the past twenty minutes. John, not expecting anyone, figured the person would soon realize that they aren’t at the correct house. Now it wonders if its something important. He swings open the door, wrinkled band shirt and green plaid pajama bottoms, prepared to yell at this person.

Soaking wet Freddie Mercury isn’t what he expected at all. Apparently, he ordered Heartbreak on Amazon’s two-day shipping. He winces but stands firm.

“Yes?”

“I thought about it.”

“And you couldn’t wait until tomorrow morning?”

“I could barely wait until now, but you said not to talk to you for two days.”

At least his wishes were respected, but he can’t imagine that Freddie would be that eager to end things.

“Okay, what do you want to say?”

Freddie leans forward but then straightens up. His hands are in his pockets and John belatedly realized that he is practically soaked through. Thunder rings through the house as if to answer his question.

“I do want a relationship with you John, not just a sexual one,” Freddie rushes out, “I want to be able to walk through the park holding hands and to take you to work functions and introduce you as my partner. I want all of that.”

John nods, even though his heart is soaring. He’s still wary of a bleeding wound. This is still just as bad of an idea as it was that night they started this, “we can do that, but if you go back on it we’re done. If we fight and break up, we’re done.”

“Trust me, John, it’s just so hard not to fall in love with you.”

They kiss passionately and heatedly and John can’t help but imagine the screen fading to black before the credits roll with a song like _Can’t Help But Falling in Love_ filling the theater.

**Author's Note:**

> As always leave your thoughts and comments below! Or come talk to me on tumblr!


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